May 29, 2026 · 9:58 am

Book Review: The Proving Ground, Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly weaves current affairs into his books, none more so than The Proving Ground, where he references the recent, devastating fires around Los Angeles (Micky Haller’s ex-wife Maggie loses her house and everything in it in the fires).

Just as relevant is the subject matter of this book – an AI company launches a companion chatbot that encourages a teenager to kill his ex-girlfriend. Haller is suing the company in civil court, as it is a sure thing that the perpetrator is guilty, but the company is otherwise likely to escape accountability. The stakes are high, as the firm TidalWaiv (great name!) is set to IPO and could be worth billions.

Micky Haller is assisted by Jack McEvoy, another of Michael Connelly’s main characters. McEvoy is a journalist and in this case dives into the technical detail as well as discovering vital background information.

I’m really enjoying these Lincoln Lawyer books, even more than the Harry Bosch titles. Whilst Bosch has many flaws (especially in his uncompromising approach professionally), I find Micky Haller a warmer character that is easy to like.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

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May 12, 2026 · 7:30 am

Book Review: The Verdict, Nick Stone

This book was a random pick from a charity bookshop that turned out rather well. It’s quite lengthy at 570+ pages, but I found it a real page-turner.

Terry Flynt was a bright young student at Cambridge University, having worked hard at his state school in Stevenage (along with best friend  Vernon James) to get the grades. Sadly, his academic life was ruined the night his friend accused him of theft, he got drunk and was beaten up in the street. Having flunked his exams the next day, he was sent down. Subsequently, he scratched a living in temporary jobs until he landed a chance at redemption as a clerk in a firm of solicitors.

Terry has his chance at revenge when, by coincidence, his nemesis Vernon is charged with murder and Terry is the clerk on the case. Terry is conflicted, wanting both to see his old friend pay, but also wanting to impress so that he can progress in his job.

The pace is pretty frantic, as Terry and investigator Alan Swayne dig deeper into the case, which looks more and more like a setup. For me, there are too many murders as the wrong-doers try to cover up the trail. Also, given the date of the original murder, it was in hindsight quite obvious which deal Vernon was working on that led to his being framed to prevent him completing that deal.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

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March 30, 2026 · 9:51 am

Book Review: The Secret of Secrets, Dan Brown

This is the latest (currently) adventure of Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks from the DaVinci code and other films). If you liked the DaVinci code and Angels & Demos, then you’ll like this, because it’s the same book again!

Historical European city full of religious symbols and beautiful architecture, across which the hero can chase from landmark to landmark, against impossible odds? ✅

Beautiful woman with whom to share the adventure? Who in this case has fallen into a deep and enduring relationship with Langdon, ahem – about a week ago? ✅

Mysterious figure wearing religious, hooded robes, with a penchant for deadly violence? And a plain, frugal existence to which they retreat, to chastise themselves afterwards? ✅

A secret, global organisation covering up ill deeds and threatening the world, and only Langdon can stop them because he’s good at … running around and breaking codes? ✅

It’s easy to dismiss Dan Brown’s books for following a similar template, but what I can’t do is deny that this book (like the others) is a jolly good read and held my attention all the way through. And it’s great value at 671 pages long!

⭐⭐⭐

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March 2, 2026 · 4:57 pm

Book Review: The Empty Chair, Jeffery Deaver

This is my second reading of this book, it turns out, having bought a cheap paperback edition at the local charity shop. I did not remember the ending, so it must have been some years ago!

The titular empty chair has two meanings – one is that of a technique used in the book, to encourage the suspect Garrett to talk about his feelings by imagining the person he wants to talk to is sitting on the chair (even his sadly departed father). The other chair belongs to Lincoln Rhyme, who is considering an experimental operation that might improve his mobility – or possibly kill him.

The plot follows the hunt to recover Mary Beth, who has been kidnapped by Garrett, and also Lydia (a nurse at the hospital) who is also kidnapped by Garrett. Garrett has an obsession with insects, and is rather uncared for, with itchy skin and blemishes. He is, however, very smart – and it turns out that his traumatic past (his family were killed in a car) triggered his truancy from school and bad behaviour at the foster home.

To add to the complications, Amelia Sachs (Lincoln’s partner) is sympathetic towards Garrett and assists him to escape from jail, in order to locate Mary Beth. In the ensuing chase, she comes under fire from the police, with deadly consequences.

⭐⭐⭐

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February 15, 2026 · 3:10 pm

Book Review: The Law of Innocence, Michael Connelly

Wow. This is the first book in some time that I could not put down. In fact, it gave me a sleepless night on Friday, so I sat down to finish it on Saturday, because I needed to know what happened!

Michael Haller, aka The Lincoln Lawyer, has been arrested and charged with the murder of a former client. As the reader, we can be sure that he is innocent – but the prosecutor is gunning for him and the evidence looks pretty solid.

Not only does Haller have to spend much of his pre-trial preparation in jail, his former girlfriend Kendall comes home to support him, and then (spoiler) leaves him once he is taken back to jail. Combining that with a beating, things look rocky for Haller. Fortunately, he is supported by half-brother Harry Bosch (also from the Michael Connelly stable), regular investigator Cisco, and first ex-wife Maggie.

Once the FBI becomes involved, perhaps that might stack the deck even further against him – unless he can provoke them into revealing their hand.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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February 15, 2026 · 10:45 am

Book Review: House Revenge, Mike Lawson

This is a lovely hardback edition of the 11th Joe DeMarco thriller by Mike Lawson, originally from the Central Arkansas library. Apparently, Little Rock funded upgrades to the library, presumably either buying or later replacing this book. It amuses me to think of this book travelling all the way to England, and honestly it is in great condition so was perfectly good enough to stay in Little Rock library.

As for the story, Joe is sent to Boston to help a feisty, old lady, Elinore Dobbs, who is being unfairly treated by her landlord to force her to move out. The landlord wants to develop a large part of the area, of which Elinore’s building is one part. Legally, there is not much DeMarco can do, given a lack of support from local law enforcement and councils.

DeMarco doesn’t always have to stay within the law though, and this story gets personal when Joe and later Elinore are attacked. Joe enlists the services of Delray, a henchman he met in a previous book, to frame the developer and his go-to thugs.

To be honest, the plot gets a bit out of hand when they involve a South American former drug smuggler in the frame, though the cameo appearance of a beautiful female assassin, La Leona, is fun.

⭐⭐⭐

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February 2, 2026 · 10:12 am

Book Review: The Waiting, Michael Connelly

Yet another excellent thriller from Michael Connelly. This one centers on Renée Ballard, but has a cameo from Harry Bosch and introduces Maddie Bosch (Harry’s daughter) in a new role as a part of Ballard’s Open-Unsolved team.

Connelly manages to weave a thread through 3 distinct cases in the book. We have the theft of Ballard’s badge and gun from her car, which leads her and Harry to a firearms deal and possible domestic terrorism. Then, there is a long-running, infamous murder case, the Black Dahlia, on which Maddie has been handed some new-old photographic evidence that could crack the case. Finally, the Open-Unsolved team investigate the Pillow Case rapist, after a chance DNA lead from an unrelated domestic disturbance. Science indicates that the miscreant’s father is the rapist, but surely not as he is a respected, senior judge.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

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January 28, 2026 · 2:42 pm

Book Review: April in Spain, John Banville

It would be doing this book a disservice to say that it is the second of Banville’s Inspector Strafford series. Yes, Strafford appears, but this is so much more than that. I was so impressed by how beautifully Banville understands people and writes characters – perhaps half the book covers State Pathologist Quirke on holiday with his wife in Spain, without a lot happening, and yet it was a delightful read.

Whilst setting the scene, we meet Terry Tice, a hitman from England, and again his background story is covered in such depth. Tice’s path is destined to coincide with Quirke’s  and there is a heart-breaking finale, as Strafford, Quirke and Tice come together at the hotel in Spain.

The obvious point is that we have a play on words in the title, with both the time being April and a missing person being Quirke’s daughter’s friend, April.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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January 7, 2026 · 5:46 pm

Book Review: House Rivals, Mike Lawson

This is the 10th book in Lawson’s Joe Demarco series, and I picked up a nice hardback edition from World of Books (originally owned by Boston Public Library no less). 

In this story, Demarco operates without Emma or Neil, his usual collaborators. Sent to North Dakota, his task is to help the granddaughter of a friend of Mahoney (his boss).  She has already been assaulted in an attempt to make her stop her online blogging attacks on Curtis, a billionaire oil tycoon. 

The violence escalates from there, with Demarco getting increasingly personally committed to helping the girl and her grandfather track down the perpetrators and exact revenge.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

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December 17, 2025 · 9:58 pm

Book Review: Exit Strategy, Lee Child

This was the new Jack Reacher thriller for 2025 (the 30th book in the series, I think).

Reacher is having coffee and witnesses a con on an elderly couple. He sees through it and tackles the wrong-doers, but then finds himself untangled in another issue.  Nathan Gilmour, a reformed gambler, has a problem and needs an exit strategy. He needs Reacher to protect him and investigate suspicious dealings at the local port.

If you were approaching a Reacher novel with a set of checkboxes, all of them would be ticked by this book. Reference to Reacher’s official size 250 pounds and 6’5″ tall? Check. References to the uncanny ability to always know the time – check (overdone if anything). Call out some unexpected maths knowledge – check, 10301 is indeed a palindromic prime. Reacher drinking copious amounts of black coffee – check and double check.

Not a great story, the usual boss-fight at the end was a bit anti-climatic, and Gilmour himself seemed to be a one-character-fits-all, hopeless and a nervous wreck when needed by the plot, yet later really great with computers and pretty good at investigating.

And Reacher walks away at the end, down a dusty road, doesn’t want to have a last drink and a hurrah after the battle is won (even though it’s a single track road and his accomplices are going to drive straight past him anyway) – check.

⭐⭐⭐

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